


Leave me a voicemail! I won't check it 'cause I'm busy saving the city.

by thegoddessinzerogravity



Category: Brooklyn Nine-Nine (TV)
Genre: Multi, Superpowers, superhero au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-12-24
Updated: 2017-02-04
Packaged: 2018-09-11 12:10:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,208
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8979157
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thegoddessinzerogravity/pseuds/thegoddessinzerogravity
Summary: Gina Linetti is the only normal person on a team of superheroes. All things considered, her life could be a lot worse.





	1. Introductions

"So, Mr. Holt."

"Captain."

"Captain Holt. I still don't totally get why we even need a captain. We've been a team a long time without a captain."

Gina actually did understand why they needed one. Amy had explained it to her in extreme detail no less than five times, and she had only ignored her and started texting _three_ times out of five. Still, it would be nice to see why this guy thought he deserved to be in charge of them. 

_Captain_ Holt ducked under the doorframe leading to Amy's apartment complex, and she felt the instinctive need to apologize for Santiago's atrocious taste in apartments. Still, hers was by far biggest and made the best secret hideout for whenever they needed to hold meetings. 

Secret hideout. Gina still had trouble believing that this was her life now. Being the glue that held a group of unstable and barely functional team of superheroes together. _Superheroes._ At least now she was guaranteed a more interesting life story than everyone else at her and Jake's high school reunion. 

She was so deep in her own thoughts that she hadn't even realized that Holt had started talking again. She hurriedly snapped back to attention as they started walking down the hallway leading to Amy's apartment. "It's mostly for organizational purposes, Ms. Linetti. Higher-ups have decided that instead of having little bands of supers running around with no direction, it would be better to assign older and more experienced supers to run and take care of already-existing groups. So that we work more as a coordinated team."

They had reached the doorway to Amy's, where the whole squad was already waiting for them. They'd learned they were to be assigned a real leader about a week ago, and reactions had ranged from a noncommittal grunt (Rosa), an excited yelp of _"finally!"_ (Amy), and a loud series of vehement protests (Jake). She eyed Holt out of the corner of one eye.

He might have been an "older and more experienced" super, but her stupid little team was a lot for anyone to handle leading. Holt stared straight back at her, and they made completely silent eye contact for a full six seconds. Four seconds over her self-imposed time limit for eye contact. 

"Can I assume that you've got everyone on file? With their powers and stuff?"

His stare somehow intensified. "I do indeed, have this squad's complete files, with their powers and stuff. However . . ." He leaned against the door, stopping her hand from where it had been reaching over to swing it open. "I think I'd prefer a more insider view on them. Tell me about your friends, Ms. Linetti."

This she hadn't been expecting. She resisted the urge to say that she wasn't friends with any of them, except for Jake and sometimes Rosa. As much as she hated to admit to anyone, including herself, this group of losers were her friends. Ugh.

"Okay, here's a basic rundown. Jake and Amy are both psychics. Reading minds and stuff. But they've got different kinds of freaky mind ESP."

"What is the difference?"

"Ames can just flat-out read minds. She says it's like other people's thoughts and brainwaves just project themselves at her, and she can choose to listen or not. With Jake, he can read inanimate objects, not people." She rushed on before Holt could pose any more questions. "So, like, if Jake touches the side of this building, he can see everyone who's ever touched it. Makes investigating crime scenes super easy. Kidnapping, but no one knows who did it? Jake can grab the side of the last place they were seen and will know exactly what the snatchers looked like and their actions."

She paused for breath and took another look at Holt. He was frowning, and flipping through the folder in his hands. "This doesn't say anything about that. It just says that Santiago and Peralta are both psychics, and that's it. Please continue, Ms. Linetti."

"Gina. Let's move onto Rosa. She can manipulate molecules. Rosa grabs a rock, she can control all the molecules that make it up and turn the rock into a knife. Or a gun. Usually she picks knives."

"That's incredible."

"I know. We're very lucky she's decided to use her powers for good rather than evil."

"And the other two members of your team, Boyle and Jeffords?"

"Charles and Terry's powers are a little more . . . garden variety." She slumped against the wall for a half-second, taking a moment to relish her amazing pun. A lifetime of being Jake Peralta's friend was rubbing off on her. "Charles can make plants grow. As long as there's even the tiniest bit of organic material, he can make _literally_ anything grow out of it." 

She decided to leave out the part where he only ever used his powers to add bizarre ingredients to his already bizarre food. The captain didn't need to know that just yet. "And Terry, to no one's surprise, has super strength. That glorious, well-built body could toss a ton with zero effort." Probably. She'd never actually seen him throw a full ton.

"Thank you, Gina," Holt said, somehow looking pleased, disappointed, and stone-cold expressionless at the same time. "I have to say, this report on you all leaves out quite a lot of valuable information."

She sighed and straightened up from the wall. "I'm not surprised, T-B-H. We're exquisite. You can't fit everything about The Danzes With Wolvez into one report." The captain's eyebrow started to creep up his face. She made a mental note to ask him about his policy team names later. (When all of them had first teamed up, Gina had instantly called dibs on the rights to name them whatever she wanted, as it was her duty as the only normal human on the team. They'd all very reluctantly agreed.)

"Before we go in to meet them, Captain Holt, dare I ask . . . what's your power?" 

"Shape-shifting. Similar to Ms. Diaz, I can control the all molecules inside something. But instead of inanimate objects, it's myself. I usually go with a corgi. They're easiest for maintaining my cover, and are also a superior hunting and herding breed."

A _corgi_. Jake was going to _flip_.

"And, correct me if I'm wrong, but you yourself don't have any powers?"

"Absolutely correct. Instead of punching people through walls or whatever these suckers do, I'm in charge of making sure these suckers don't get caught or arrested by the regular people cops."

"So you essentially make sure this team can function normally, without interrupting the lives of civilians caught in the crossfire."

"Yup." His face switched to a blend of stone-cold expressionless and impressed, and she took a moment to preen. It never got old, seeing people realize how important some regular-ass, non-superhero human was to holding one of the best teams in Brooklyn together. "I use a combination of _excellent_ people skills, my stunning beauty, and mesmerizing voice to make sure regular people don't get hurt and my team doesn't get arrested. I'm underappreciated in my time."

"Well, Gina. I'm sufficiently impressed." He stepped away from the door. "Shall we meet the squad?"

She swung her right hand into a salute, and grabbed the door handle to Amy's apartment with her left. "Absolutely, sir. We're delighted to have you."


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Boxcar town and water criminals await!

It was dropping to nearly 5 degrees Fahrenheit, on a bitter winter evening, and instead of being at home watching Oprah's Legends Ball, Gina Linetti was helping her team track down a criminal through an abandoned railway. A criminal who may or may not be able to breath underwater, and held a lifelong grudge against Holt. Why he would situate himself in Brooklyn rather than, say, L.A., was a mystery.

Jake had originally been, in his words "hy-ped as hell" to be tracking down the real-life Aquaman, until he'd informed the team about the whole death-threats aspect of it. Then he'd gotten a lot serious. Which had led to Gina being awkwardly pressed against an outdated boxcar, freezing half to death and waiting for someone to report something.

Whenever missions that required the entire squad occurred, they always offered Gina the opportunity to stay at home and wait for them. She always turned it down, because she'd be damned if she'd allow the family that she'd spent so many years with to plunge into danger without her.

(She had accepted that offer, once, and Amy had ended up in the hospital with a stab wound to the chest. They had gone up against another pair of psychics with similar powers to her and Jake, and the results had been nasty. The squad had spent the entire night gathered around her bed, and Gina had ducked into the crappy hospital bathroom multiple times to pinch herself on the wrist and ordering herself not to cry, not even a little bit. 

Amy had been fine. But Gina had never let them go out without her, ever. She was a good luck charm, in a weird way.) 

The police-issue walkie talkie that she'd acquired semi-legally buzzed, and Charles' voice came through. "Nothing on the west side. Rosa, are you sure this is gonna work?"

"Don't doubt me, Boyle. Santiago, Jeffords, anything?"

"Nothing. Amy thinks he must be on the south end, because she can't pick up any of his thoughts." 

"Peralta?"

"Sorry, Rosa. All these boxcars are telling me is that he's here somewhere. Useless boxcars. I'll never love them again."

"Stop being creepy, it's not funny."

"Team?" Holt voice buzzed over the walkie talkie system. "Please focus. Start moving to the south side. If Santiago can't detect him, he can't be anywhere near the north. I trust her instincts."

Gina could practically hear Amy perking up. "Thank you sir! I won't let you down, we'll get this done if it takes all night-"

" _We'll Get This Done If It Takes All Night_ , title of Santiago's sex tape-"

"Peralta!"

"Sorry, Terry-"

Gina hopped off the edge of the boxcar she'd been crouching on and started to weave her way northward. Ignoring their bickering was fairly standard by now. 

"Gina, you good?"

"I'm all good, Jake. Nothing on the plain 'ol non-super eyes, if anyone was wondering."

She turned a corner just in time to see Charles round the other side, his eyes widening in obvious relief upon seeing her. "Gina, thank goodness. It's so creepy out here, isn't it? Being this alone is making me think about my ex-wife."

She just turned in a circle and desperately hoped someone significantly cooler showed up. Being stuck alone at night with Charles Boyle was #8 on the official Gina Linetti's Worst Ways To Die. 

To her immense relief, Holt and Jake came hurrying around the corner next, followed quickly by Rosa. Jake almost instantly frowned at seeing her. "Where's Amy and Terry?" She shrugged. "They're all the way on the other side of the yard, it'll take them longer to get here."

They went quiet, and it occurred to her that if Amy was right, they could potentially be right next to the killer. Normally the mystery and intrigue would have excited her, but tonight it was just unsettling.

Jake nervously glanced at her. He must've had the same thought.

Just as the creepiness of their surroundings was really starting to set in, Amy and Terry hurried around the corner of one of the cars. Amy almost immediately bent over and started wheezing for breath, and Terry sympathetically put one hand on her back. "Sorry I rushed you, Santiago. Time is-"

Amy jerked upright so quickly it looked like someone had yanked a string in her back, and both her hands clapped over her mouth. Her eyes were frozen on the boxcar directly behind Gina, and _oh, shit._

The door behind her made a noise like an explosion, and all the breath was abruptly knocked out of her. When her vision had returned to normal and Kwazy Cupcake patterns were no longer floating in front of her eyes, she found herself flat on her back, Rosa crouched next to her. She could only assume that Rosa had anticipated what would happen and had knocked her down before the criminal had a chance too. The woman in question was gripping something in her hand, something Gina could barely make out in a darkness of the yard-

"A _shuriken?_ Damn, girl." Rosa didn't respond, just leaned forward to examine the scene going on. Gina rose up on her haunches to survey the scene before her, and immediately wished she hadn't. Amy seemed to be locked in the weirdest, lamest, hands-free version of the salsa to ever exist with the criminal, both of them lunging and dancing around each other without actually making contact. Amy was probably predicting his attacks seconds before he actually made them, resulting in the bizarre quasi-dance.

All the others seemed to be stuck on the other side of the mini-clearing they found themselves in, watching in a mixture of horror and amazement (and amusement, in Jake's case), but no one seemed to be planning. This guy was evidently fast enough to hold his own against Amy, which was a pretty difficult feat, despite how lame she was. They needed to make him stop, slow down somehow.

Terry could try swinging at him, or Rosa could make a weapon and throw it, but both of those would come dangerously close to hitting Amy.

A realization popped into her head, and she rose up to her full height, ignoring Rosa's hiss of "get back down, you idiot, Santiago can't distract him forever-" and waved her hand to attract Boyle's attention. His eyebrows shot up in surprise at the motion, and she quickly made several wild gestures with her hands, ending by pointing at the criminals feet. She could only hope that he would understand what she meant, this was why she switched to Emoji language in the first place, damnit. 

As if in answer to her prayers, vines exploded from the ground in a burst of green and started lashing themselves around the pair, and Gina resisted the urge to punch the air in celebration. She had a reputation as a stone-cold bitch to uphold, after all.

The air in the center of the clearing was a whirl of green for a second, and when it faded, both Amy and the perp had long, thick vines wrapped firmly around their feet. By the time the whole team reached the center of the mini-clearing, Amy was cursing under her breath and fruitlessly yanking on the rope-like plants around her feet. "Amy, I'm so sorry, it was the only way to stop him quickly-" Charles babbled hysterically upon seeing her dilemma. Gina only got to enjoy the sight for a few seconds before Terry bent down and effortlessly tore the vines away from Santiago, leaving the perp still bound.

Jake was eagerly following the Captain Holt as he made his way towards her, stepping over the plants lying all over the yard. He actually smiled when he reached her, and she had to mentally agree with Jake's dramatic gasp at the movement. Holt never smiled. "That was excellent work, Gina. Quick-thinking under pressure."

Amy was still grumpily plucking stray roots off of herself, overlaid by Boyle frantically apologizing and Rosa and Terry's chuckling, and Gina was thinking that maybe this night hadn't ended quite as horribly as it had begun. Maybe.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> stole elements from various episodes of the actual show (mostly from the season 1 Christmas episode, because what a classic) to create my frankenstein-esque monster of a chapter.
> 
> hopefully i'll be able to get more regular updates out soon, as people seem to really like this, which makes me SO happy! you have no idea. 
> 
> drop me a comment! i love reading them.
> 
> <3


	3. Chapter 3

"Hey, Gina."

"Mm-hm?" 

They were walking home from school, on an uncomfortably humid October day, and Gina was much more focused on the sweat gathering on the back of her neck than whatever her best friend and fellow seventh grader Jake Peralta was saying to her. As a result, his next few words were turned into meaningless babble. 

She realized with a guilty start that he was waiting for a response, and stopped running her fingers along the back of her hair and patted him on the arm. "Sorry, Jake. Say that again?"

He frowned, but repeated "Can you keep a secret? A kind of weird, most-people-would-lock-me-up-for-saying-this secret?" 

That hadn't been what she was expecting. She slowed her pace and he copied her until they were face-to-face, and for the first time that day she noticed how anxious he looked. His normal bright expression was gone, replaced by scrunched eyebrows and clear anxiety in his eyes. Gina prided herself on being an expert on Jake's emotional state, as was her duty. Something serious was bugging him. 

"Tell Mama Linetti _everything_ , Jakey." He winced (he hated it when she called herself that) and nervously ran a hand through his fluffy brown hair. "I . . . think I might have superpowers." 

Well. 

She slowly shuffled her feet over the ground, the first few fallen leaves of autumn scraping alongside her sneakers. "Elaborate." 

He nervously shifted his weight from side to side. "I think I can see the past? Like things that have already happened. Uh, when we were in the old section of the school today, I touched the side of the building, and it was like . . . I saw what happened there? Like a hundred years ago." 

She gave him a cockeyed look. "How so?" 

"A bunch of guys dressed super-old, in funny hats and big boots. They were talking to each other, and I couldn't catch what they were saying, but it was real, Gina, I wasn't just imagining things. Was I?" 

He looked her directly in the eyes, and she saw the fake aura of confidence he projected rapidly fraying away, desperate for some kind of confirmation of what he'd seen. Gina felt a rush of sympathy and curiosity, and reached out to pat his arm again. "I believe you. But . . ."

"But what? Oh, Holy Moses, you think I'm crazy, don't you? Are you gonna tell my mom? Are you gonna tell Nana?" 

"Jake! I don't think you're crazy, I totally believe you. What I was gonna say, before you rudely interrupted me,"

She scuffled her feet along the ground again, and felt a smile start to grow along her face. "Can you do it again?" 

He blinked at her, and started to smile back. "Maybe . . . ? I think if I find another old building, I'll be able to see stuff that happened there." 

And thus the rest of their afternoon was spent tearing through their neighborhood, looking for suitably old buildings for Jake to divine the past from. They had gone through three when they got shouted at by a _very_ grumpy man for tip-toeing through his yard so Jake could press a hand against the side of his building. As they ran away towards Nana's apartment as fast as their legs could take them, Jake panted "that mean old guy's house used to be an old-timey sex club!" 

Her laughter was carried away by the wind, and she didn't care about the humidity or the heat or the ache in her legs from running too fast, because Gina Linetti was 12 years old and her best friend was a superhero, like in the dorky comics he read, and the wind whipping her hair back and forth and Jake's laughter trailing into the air was the happiest moment of her young life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> jake's comment about "the old section of the school" is based off of my elementary school, as a lot of public schools in new york are old buildings that were converted into schools, because no one else was using them. (don't @ me i grew up in brooklyn) 
> 
> sorry for the delay! i wanted to take this out last week, but school and general life-related things got in the way. tell me what you thought! 
> 
> twitter: @scully_ebooks

**Author's Note:**

> thank you for reading! this idea came to me after thinking about an "Agents of SHIELD/b99 crossover", but then i thought "how can i make it better?" and it spun out of control to the point where it was no longer related to AOS at all. cheers.
> 
> anyway, tell me what you thought! i definitely want to add more chapters, probably continuing Gina's POV.
> 
> happy holidays, everyone! i hope you enjoyed <3


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